I always enjoy staying in touch with our clients!
Yesterday I got to go hang out with my friends at Exaqueo. They had recently hired a new team member, and were haveing one of thier planning meetings out at Wild Dunes Resort. I went out and photographed headshots of Jaclyn, as well as some fun updated team photos.
It was great seeing everyone again! What a great company…and such a nice group of people!!!
Remember the old Hairclub for Men advertisement, “I’m not only a client, I’m also the president”? For many of our clients, I can say “I’m not only a client, I’m also the photographer! 🙂
Last week I had the honor of catching up with our old friend, and our trusted State Farm insurance agent, Kevin Sevier. It’s truly amazing what he has done with his business! They finally moved into their new building last year. And they’ve added new members to their team. So Cami and I went down to photograph new team photos and updated head-shots for them.
We had a great time, and even got the behind-the-scenes tour!
Flying in all the way from Missouri, it was just wonderful to see our good friend Samantha again last weekend! It was also such a pleasure to finally meet her fiance, Todd. He’s an amazing guy! They are absolutely perfect together!!!
Recently graduating from Veterinarian School and Dental School, respectively, Samantha and Todd can finally turn their attention to wedding plans. It’s an absolute honor that they have selected Cami and I to capture this special time in their lives for them.
As part of that process, we hosted them here in Charleston for a really fun extended engagement session! The entire weekend could be described as part reunion (we haven’t seen Samantha for several years), part introduction (we had so much fun getting to know Todd), part vacation (Samantha and Todd were celebrating finally earning their degrees), part tourist trap (Cami and I made sure to take them to all the best tourist attractions and iconic restaurants in town), and of course part engagement session (we photographed beautiful portraits of them all around Charleston everywhere we went). As such, we had an absolute BLAST the entire weekend, while capturing more variety than any other engagement session we’ve ever photographed!!!
CONGRATULATIONS Samantha and Todd! We love you guys, and can’t wait to be there for you on your beautiful wedding day!!!
Today was an absolutely PERFECT day to be “Playing Tourist” in Charleston! I had the pleasure of working with my good friend, and amazing photographer, Gary Coleman, as we covered a fun incentive trip for one of his clients. The first part of my day included covering a sailboat trip out on the breezy and picturesque Charleston Harbor. The second part included a wonderful walking tour through the old historic district, led by the lovely Joyce Sauls.
Early in the spring of 2018, a young man by the name of Tom reached out to me:
“My girlfriend and I will be visiting Charleston in early February, and I am planning on proposing to her…are you available February 9th?”
Tom spent the following weeks corresponding with me and planning every detail of his surprise proposal to Katie. I could tell he was an amazing guy, and that he wanted everything to be perfect for the girl if his dreams! It was. She said yes. And it was my distinct honor to capture that special moment when he slipped the engagement ring on her finger: https://chrisandcami.com/katie-toms-secret-proposal-at-white-point-garden/.
It was so much fun getting to know Katie & Tom through that experience. Imagine my excitement when several months later they also asked me to photograph their wedding in Tampa!?! Having been there for them in the beginning when Katie said “YES”, it was such a joy to be there on this special day in the spring of 2019 when she said “I DO”!!!
Katie & Tom’s wedding celebration was absolutely perfect. With a rehearsal dinner at the Tampa Yacht & Country Club, wedding day preparations starting off at the Grand Hyatt Tampa Bay, and the wedding/reception held at the Davis Island Garden Club, I couldn’t have asked for more picturesque locations. The sun was shining, the ocean breezes were blowing, and the temperature was absolutely perfect. Katie was absolutely stunning in her gorgeous wedding gown and colorful bouquet. Tom was quite dashing in his blue suit with choral necktie and complimentary boutonniere.
Throughout their special day, the energy was palpable, and the excitement ecstatic! I can’t remember the last time I laughed so much at a wedding. It was like every member of the wedding party was hand-picked to fit a perfect cast of comical characters with charisma and charm to boot. Everyone had so much fun…and I had so much fun capturing every moment of it all!!!
Many thanks to Katie’s Mom Sherry for all her hard work in pulling everything together. I am so grateful to Christi Windsor of Windsor Events, everyone at the Davis Island Garden Club, Olympia Catering, FH Events, DJ Kevin Cramer, UDream Events, West Palm Wines, Femme Akoi, Tampa Lights, Connie Dugin Linens, OMG Trolley Company, and everyone else who played a part in making this amazing day come together so beautifully for Katie & Tom.
To see more of their photos, visit: https://chrisandcami.zenfolio.com/katieandtomwedding.
CONGRATULATIONS Katie & Tom! We wish you all the happiness in the world as you begin your new journey together.
Being a professional photographer is not always roses and sunshine. Sometimes we are faced with difficult scenarios, yet expected to produce stellar results!
Photographing an assignment for Lee & Associates, I needed to create headshots for a couple of recent additions to the team. We normally do their shoots in The Cedar Room. This is the big beautiful ballroom in Charleston that’s known for its gorgeous historic brick walls. Instead, they offered us this wall in the bottom floor, which is now a a back service entrance in the basement of the old factory.
I got to work and set up my Nikon D5 with Nikkor 70-200 f2.8 on the Manfrotto 055 carbon fiber tripod. I mounted 2 SB-5000 flashes, both set to Group A, on a Manfrotto light stand with a 60″ Westcott shoot-through umbrella, as my main light. I set 2 SB-5000 flashes, on another light stand with a shoot through umbrella in the back. One of these flashes was set to Group B and directed at the subject to act as a rim/fill light. The other was set to Group C and directed at the wall as a background light. The camera was then tethered to my Lenovo Yoga laptop, which rested comfortably on the trash can in the corner. Using Adobe Lightroom allowed the client to proof images as I shot, and allowed each individual pick out their favorite shots.
In spite of the conditions, with a little ingenuity, and a dash of creativity, we were able to make this dark hallway look as bright and beautiful as the gorgeous ballroom above!
I’ve been looking forward to meeting Mary Beth & Bryant for a VERY long time! We finally met up this weekend, on a gorgeous spring day, to capture some beautiful engagement photos for their up-coming wedding. 🙂
Starting off at Hampton Park, I was quite surprised at how many flowers were already in full bloom! With vibrant colors from the flowers, huge oak trees, a black iron bridge, and long wooded walkways, we came away with some absolutely MAGICAL images! But to top it all off, we zipped over to Brittlebank Park to capture the last rays of a gorgeous setting sun over the Ashley River… and of course the beautiful twilight that followed.
I had such a blast getting to know Mary Beth and Bryant. I can’t wait to be there for them to preserve all the special moments of their amazing wedding this summer!!!
Earlier this week I had the pleasure of working with the amazing team at the Lovely Law Firm in Myrtle Beach. We picked the Grand Dunes Ocean Club for the backdrop of our photo shoot. It was a beautiful day and we came away with some awesome images!
This was my second time working with Justin and his company. They are a great group of people, and always fight hard for their clients!
Images shot with Nikon D850, Nikkor 24-70, Nikkor 105, Sony XQD cards, and up to 4 Nikon SB-5000 off-camera flashes (depending on the scene).
Earlier this week I had the pleasure of photographing more head-shot for one of my favorite clients! As Siemon Whiteside continues to grow and expand, they bring me in to photograph the newest members of their awesome team of professionals.
Setting up my portable studio in their conference room included the following: Savage seamless black background, Nikon D5, Sony XQD Card, Nikkor 70-200, Nikon SB-5000 (Master) flash, Westcott Apollo 50″ softbox with 3 SB-800 flashes (main light), two Westcott Apollo Strip Lights with 1 SB-800 each (rim lights), RadioPoppers (to sync all flashes), and Lenovo Yoga Laptop (tethered to camera).
I always enjoy working with this awesome team of wonderful human beings!
Today found me driving to Columbia, South Carolina, to photograph entrepreneur and chef extraordinaire, Folami Geter. Folami created “A Peace of Soul”, which is a food truck, and soon to be restaurant, serving fresh and delicious vegan meals that are to die for!
The assignment was for the South Carolina Community Loan Fund, which is writing a piece on Folami’s success story. The SCCLF was instrumental in helping Folami purchase and renovate her restaurant building, which will open its doors soon.
I photographed this assignment with the Nikon D850, Nikkor 24-70, and up to 4 SB-5000 flashes. Some of the shots include gels on the flashes for added color and drama to the otherwise drab interior of the food-truck’s utilitarian work space. I also captured some establishing shots with the DJI Mavic Pro.
Over the course of the two-day Comcast Conference, held at the North Charleston Marriott, I had the pleasure of photographing head-shots for over 150 executives, managers, and team leaders. It was hard work keeping on schedule and maintaining that pace. But everyone was so kind and gracious, and each individual was so full of energy. They kept me pumped up! And I had so much fun! What a great group!!!
This afternoon I had a super fun photo shoot with one of my all-time favorite clients!
Palmetto Community Care provides complete compassionate care, free testing and prevention measures, and referrals to medical care and support for those living with HIV and AIDS in the greater Charleston area. “We believe no one living with HIV or AIDS should go without medical care, everyday resources and emotional support.”
I absolutely love working with Palmetto Community Care…not only because they are wonderful, vibrant, caring, and loving human beings, but because they are doing good things for the people of Charleston!
All images were shot on the Nikon D5 with my favorite Nikkor 70-200 f2.8 VRII lens. Lighting was provided by 6 off-camera speedlights. 1 Nikon SB-5000 was lighting the background for that bright “high-key” look. 3 SB-800 flashes in a 50″ Westcott Apollo softbox provided the main light. And 2 SB-800 flashes in a Westcott 36″ shoot-through umbrella created a soft fill light. Shooting tethered to my Lenovo Yoga, images instantly popped up in Adobe Lightroom and automatically had my special black-and-white preset applied to them so that individuals could approve of their portraits and pick out their favorites.
